No. 17/18 Mizzou Softball Picks Up Three Wins

Saturday, March 13

Columbia, Mo.

2 p.m. CT (restart)

University of Missouri

16-4

Kent State

2-9

Kent State

Missouri

3/13/2021 10:00:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score 3 Photo Gallery

COLUMBIA, Mo. - No. 17/18 Mizzou Softball was able to capture the first three home games of the 2021 season on Saturday. The Tigers defeated Kent State in a continuation of Friday's game and picked up wins over Drake and Iowa State.

GAME ONE

The Tigers came out of the gates hot, scoring 15 runs in less-than three innings of play before the rain suspended play until the next day. The scoring started off in the first with a pair of RBI walks, and was highlighted by a bases-clearing triple by freshman Jenna Laird. The Tigers would go on to score six runs in the opening frame.

The third inning started off with two quick outs, but then Mizzou rode a huge two-out rally to the tune of eight runs before the rain moved in and pushed the resumption of the game to Saturday afternoon. A three-run homer by senior Brooke Wilmes started the rally, it was continued by a Hatti Moore two-run shot, and was capped off by Laird's three-run dinger.

Play was picked up on Saturday, and Mizzou finished the last of the game in quick fashion, run-ruling the Golden flashes in the fifth.

TURNING POINT

Entering the day, the game seemed to already be in hand for the Tigers, as the run-rule was already in place.

TOP TIGERS

Jenna Laird had a huge game, going 2-for-3 with a three-run home run, a three-run triple, and a career-high six RBIs.

Hatti Moore hit her seventh home run on the year with a two-run homer and also scored three runs in the game.

Brooke Wilmes went 1-for-2 at the plate, with her one hit being a three-run homer that started the huge 3rd inning for the Tigers.

Kimberly Wert added two hits and two RBIs in the game, as well as scoring a pair of runs.

NOTES

Eight of the nine Tiger starters scored a run in the game, with the first six batters in the lineup scoring two or more.

Mizzou hit three, two-out bombs in the 3rd inning, which came off the bats of Wilmes, Moore, and Laird.

Mizzou put up double-digit runs for the fifth time this season, their third time in the past five outings.

The victory over Kent State gives Coach Larissa Anderson her 200th career win.

GAME TWO

In the Tigers' second game of the day, the team picked up a shutout win over the Drake Bulldogs.

The Tigers kept up their first inning scoring tendencies by putting up two runs in the frame on a Jenna Laird RBI single that drove in both runs in the inning. Mizzou would add two more runs to the scoreboard in the third on a two-run big fly to center by senior Kimberly Wert. The scoring for the Tigers would be capped off in the fourth by a sac fly off the bat of Hatti Moore.

Five runs on the board would be all the Tiger pitching staff needed in the game behind two dominant performances in the circle. Sophomore Jordan Weber was lights out with the start today. She worked five innings of shutout softball, while striking out four Bulldog batters and only giving up two hits. Senior Sophie Dandola would come in relief of Weber, going two innings and also giving up zero runs.

Drake had plenty of opportunities to put runs on the board, leaving six on base, but they couldn't collect the much needed big hit against the Mizzou hurlers. Mizzou on the other hand took the most out of the opportunities given to them by scoring five runs on eight hits compared to Drake's zero runs on four hits

TURNING POINT

Jordan Weber kept the Drake bats silent throughout the day and Sophie Dandola was able to come on and put up a pair of scoreless innings. Kimberly Wert's home run in the third inning put the game away for good.

TOP TIGERS

Jordan Weber was lights in the circle today, throwing five shutout innings, racking up four punchouts, and only giving up two hits.

Kimberly Wert had a huge game, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs on her eighth home run of the season and 30th at Mizzou.

Jenna Laird went 2-for-3 and added two more RBIs to her impressive weekend total on her single to left in the first inning.

NOTES

Jenna Laird is up to eight RBIs through two games.

Mizzou has seven shutout victories this season.

Weber collected her sixth win of the season, surpassing her 2020 total.

GAME THREE

Mizzou made a dramatic comeback in the bottom of the sixth to take the battle against the Iowa State Cyclones. The Tigers relied on a clutch pitching performance from Emma Nichols to keep the team within striking position.

Mizzou struggled offensively to put anything together all night against a tough pitcher. Double plays in the first and fourth squandered any chance Mizzou had at capitalizing with runners on base.

The Mizzou pitching staff was able to work their way out of jams all night and forced the Cyclones to leave a whopping 10 runners on base. Freshman Laurin Krings was tabbed with the no decision on the night, but she was able to rack up seven strikeouts in almost three innings pitched. Sophomore Emma Nichols entered in relief of Krings, and kept the Tigers in this game. She gave up only four hits and got the Cyclones to groundout seven times to earn the win.

TURNING POINT

Mizzou would eventually break out in the sixth, grabbing four hits and scoring three runs in the inning. Iowa native Alex Honnold came off the bench to pinch hit in the sixth, and got the rally started by roping a hard line drive off the center field wall for a double. Honnold was driven in on a single by Abby George and an error on the Cyclone defense. A few batters later, Kimberly Wert came up clutch and hit an RBI single to right and forced an error to bring in the third and final run for the Tigers.